Fig & Olive x Ottolenghi a cracking combo
So after a hard Sunday morning packing all the stuff I’ve accumulated throughout the year (trust me there was A LOT) we started hearing a-grumble in our tumbles. Flagging plus the naff job of moving all your stuff out is not a great mix, so we decided to mooch down to Angel.
Having lived so close for over a year I really haven’t utilized this place, and have often oggled at the cake window displays. There are several establishments I’ve had my eye on, so it was time to test a couple.
I’ve heard great things about Ottolenghi (@ottolenghi), so here was our first port of call. But the sit down Q was mahusive, so we decided this would be our cake/pud noshery. So we wandered back to Fig & Olive (@TheFigAndOlive). I’m obsessed with figs, and Mummy G with olives. Perfecto!
Bloody fab choice.
We went for a series of starters:
- Olives (surprise surprise)
- Garlic bread
- Hummus with pan fried lamb & pine nuts
- Pan fried Chorizo with mushrooms, manchego cheese and tomato sauce
- Seared scallops with flambeed apple and orange dressing
- Breaded fried Camembert with redcurrant & raspberry coulis
Oh by the beard of Zeus it was like a party in my mouth! The sharp and sweet coulis teamed with the creamy Camembert (My fave!). The tender lamb, warm pittas & hummus. Chorizo!! (mums fave) I drank the soupy bit left in the bottom. The apples & scallops so juicy, literally the only bad point of all the dishes was the orange sauce was a little sweet. Oh and they had cheeky little figs in the olives!
So the desserts looked good…….but not quite as drooltastically spectacular as Ottolenghi. So we crossed over the road and nipped in.
However we thought we’d let our din dins go down and wandered into central for some culture/retail therapy.
So when we got home, pretty dog tired there was still more packing/cleaning to do! Doh! So for the needed sugar zap we cracked into the cake. We had invested in quite a melee.
- Apple, vanilla & sultana cake
- Chocolate, mascarpone & nut tart
- Chocolate smore
- Double choc cookie (peeking into the pic above!)
- Apricot & pistachio cheesecake
Mum went for the apple, vanilla and sultana cake plus a bit of cheesecake. I went for err all the rest. Oh berjabbers, so good. I had not quite intended on eating all the rest but it was just so light and easy! I did remember to save half a cookie and smore for Nina (cakes always appreciated, especially when you’re hungover but I wish I’d saved some of the others so she could see how A-MAZ-ING they were! I’ve been spoilt with cake the last few days, first Sweet Couture now Ottolenghi, Cornishland is going to have to step up to compete!!!
Verdict!?
Dollar dollar: Okay so when the folks are up you’d be silly to go to PFC (not even KFC….).
So F&G plates were about £6 a pop, which I thought actually was rather reasonable. The starters were pretty big! 8/10
Ottolenghi was rather pricey for cake, the cheesecake was £3.80. The 5 puds cost us about £15, so not extortionate, a nice treat 7/10
Nosh: Both amazing. F&G’s attention to detail was sor-ted. The plates were immaculate, good sides & blimin delicious. 9/10
Ottolenghi’s apricot cheesecake was like err drooltacular! Apricots inside too. Cake yum, tart yum, cookie & smore yum. All sweet but so easy to eat! (Possibly dangerous…) Sor-ted. 9/10
Vibe: The Fig & Olive was buzzing on a Sunday afternoon, but the wait wasn’t too long. Lovely interior, comfy seat and food people watching angel spot. Plus seats outside. 9/10
Due to its popularity Ottolenghi was super busy. However food from the counter came out a little exit the same side as the take away desserts were. A bit congested. 6/10
Team cohesion: The F&G staff were really friendly and helpful. One chap who was so lovely let us taste the wine and poured our glasses etc. AND he looked like Gok Wan which made me happy 8/10
However the lady that served us in Ottolenghi was quite abrasive, we changed our mind on one cake and she like made a bit of a fass about it so we just got both. Also as the food was coming out the side where everyone was looking at dessert it was awkward between customers and staff alike. Good job the food was fab 5/10
After hours?
After linner noshing, a quick gand at the mummies in the British Museum (cultured) and erm Primark (don’t judge). After cakey dinner, bed. Theeeen getting woken up to move all your boxes downstairs as your housemate (whose room all my stuff was in) is unexpectedly coming come my bad. Then proper bed.
London love
Xoxoxo
The Fig & Olive
Modern European – Open for lunch and dinner each day.
151 Upper Street London N1 1RA
Ottolenghi Deli
287 Upper Street
London N1 2TZ
Branches also include NOPI restaurant Soho, Notting Hill & Belgravia.
